New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 4 - CULTURAL RESOURCES
Chapter 10 - CULTURAL PROPERTIES AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Part 14 - CULTURAL PROPERTIES ON PRIVATE LAND AND MECHANICAL EXCAVATION PERMITS
Section 4.10.14.7 - DEFINITIONS

Universal Citation: 4 NM Admin Code 4.10.14.7

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024

A. "Agent" means an individual who is authorized by a written agreement with a private landowner to act on behalf of the landowner and who works under the landowner's personal and direct supervision.

B. "Archaeological investigation" means the study of archaeological sites, isolates and areas of historic and scientific interest including without limitation survey and inventory, examination, collection, limited tests, test excavation, excavation and monitoring.

C. "Archaeological site" or "site" means a location where there exists material evidence of the past life and culture of human beings in the state and is the location of a significant event, a prehistoric or historic occupation or activity, or a building or structure, whether standing, ruined or vanished, where the location itself maintains historical or archaeological value regardless of the value of any existing structure. An archaeological site typically is 50 or more years old. Examples of archaeological sites include without limitation campsites, habitation sites, ruins of buildings and structures, artifact scatters, resource procurement or processing areas, agricultural fields, locales with one or more features in association with other cultural materials.

D. "Committee" or "CPRC"means the cultural properties review committee, created pursuant to Section 18-6-4 NMSA 1978 of the Cultural Properties Act.

E. "Cultural property" means a structure, place, site or object having historic, archaeological, scientific, architectural or other cultural significance.

F. "Excavation" means to systematically dig up artifacts, deposits or material remains within the boundaries of an archaeological site, isolate or area of historic and scientific interest using hand tools or mechanical earth-moving equipment.

G. "Historic preservation division" or "HPD" means the division within the department of cultural affairs created pursuant to Subsection A of Section 18-6-8 NMSA 1978 of the Cultural Properties Act.

H. "Human burial" or "unmarked human burial" means a human body or human skeletal remains and includes any funerary object, material object or artifact buried, entombed or sepulchered with that human body or skeletal remains.

I. "Individual unmarked human burial excavation permit" is a permit issued by the CPRC with the concurrence of the state archaeologist and the SHPO for the excavation of unmarked human burials on state or private land. Individual unmarked human burial permits are submitted with an application for a project-specific permit for excavation and when unmarked human burials are known to exist within the project area.

J. "Material remains" means any tangible evidence of past human life or activities. Such evidence includes without limitation:

(1) naturally occurring objects or raw materials extracted for use in the production of human-made objects or for other uses by humans that can be found within an archaeological site, or another context from which intended or actual human use can be reasonably inferred;

(2) items manufactured or modified by humans, including whole or fragmentary tools, implements, containers, and other objects such as pottery, ceramics, basketry, cordage, weavings, textiles, glassware, flaked stone, ground stone, pecked stone, worked bone, metal, wood, hide, feathers and pigments;

(3) byproducts, waste products and debris resulting from the manufacture or use of human-made items or from the human use of natural materials;

(4) organic material deposited through human actions, organic material remaining from the decay of perishable objects manufactured or modified by humans, and organic material deposited through natural processes when found within an archaeological site including without limitation soil or sediment samples, botanical and animal remains and coprolites; or

(5) human remains including without limitation bone, mummified flesh, teeth, the remains of cremations, any associated artifacts and objects, and the soil, sediments, or other matrix in which the human skeletal or mummified remains and associated artifacts and objects were deposited or are now associated.

K. "Mechanical earth-moving equipment" means any motorized machine or device that is capable of displacing, disturbing or moving earth, soil, dirt or other deposits or materials from including without limitation trenchers, backhoes, graders, scrapers, bulldozers and front-end loaders.

L. "Mechanical Excavation Permit" is a permit issued by the CPRC with the concurrence of the state archaeologist and the SHPO for the excavation of archaeological sites on private land using mechanical earth-moving equipment by someone other than the landowner or his agent.

M. "Permit" means the written authorization required for all public and private entities to conduct archaeological investigations of a particular kind, within a defined geographic location and for a specified period of time.

N. "Preservation" means sustaining the existing form, integrity, material or vegetative cover of a cultural property and includes protective maintenance or stabilization.

O. "Protection" means safeguarding the physical condition or environment of an archaeological site or historic structure or building from deterioration or damage caused by weather or other natural, animal or human intrusions.

P. "Restoration" means recovering the general historic appearance of a cultural property or the form and details of an object or structure by removing incompatible natural or human-caused accretions and replacing missing elements as appropriate.

Q. "State archaeologist" means the archaeologist designated pursuant to Section 18-6-15 NMSA 1978 of the Cultural Properties Act.

R. "State historic preservation officer" or "SHPO" means the individual appointed pursuant to Section 18-6-8 NMSA 1978 of the Cultural Properties Act who serves as the director of the HPD.

S. "State register" means the New Mexico register of cultural properties maintained by the CPRC for the purpose of recording cultural properties deemed worthy of preservation.

T. "Unmarked burial ground" means a location where there exists a burial or burials of any human beings that are not visibly marked on the surface of the ground in any manner traditionally or customarily used for marking burials and includes any funerary object, material object or artifact associated with the burial or burials.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New Mexico may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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